A 53-year-old American has confirmed he is the man who was arrested for questioning about the suspected murder of Kerry farmer Michael Gaine (56).
Michael Kelley, from Maine, denies he had anything to do with the Kerry farmer’s disappearance.
He confirmed to The Irish Times that an earlier interview with the Irish Mirror, in which he said he was the man gardaí arrested for questioning about Mr Gaine’s death, was “fair and accurate”.
Mr Kelley also confirmed earlier to that newspaper that he was denying any involvement in Mr Gaine’s death and said it is “a matter of record” that he was arrested by gardaí and questioned about the killing.
American man Michael Kelley (53) confirms he was suspect arrested for questioning about Michael Gaine
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He also alleged that he was being framed for the killing by criminals.
“There may be elements that want to string me up – people who have an interest in organised crime – people who are involved in organised crime,” he told the newspaper.
Mr Gaine disappeared on March 20th after calling to a shop in Kenmare. His vehicle was later found at the farmyard at the old Gaine family home at Carrig East, 6km from Kenmare where he had invited Mr Kelley to stay in return for doing jobs on the farm.
Gardaí initially treated Mr Gaine’s disappearance as a missing persons investigation but, on April 29th, they upgraded their investigation to a homicide inquiry after searches exhausted the possibility that Mr Gaine had either self-harmed or suffered a fatal accident.
On May 16th, body parts were found by Mr Gaine’s nephew, Mark O’Regan, while spreading slurry on the Gaine family farm at Carrig East. Gardaí immediately declared the farm a crime scene and cordoned off the area.
Gardaí arrested Mr Kelley on May 18th at an address in Tralee where he had been living for around three weeks since leaving Mr Gaine’s farmhouse.
He was approached by The Irish Mirror while busking in the town, playing traditional music on the flute. He confirmed to the newspaper the details of his arrest, but he refused to be drawn on what he believed happened to Mr Gaine or about their relationship.
“It would be incautious for me to comment on that on the advice of my solicitor,” he said, adding that his comments to gardaí at interview are “privileged between the guards, the solicitor and myself”.
He said he was upset over Mr Gaine’s death and, when asked why he believed gardaí arrested him for questioning about Mr Gaine’s death, he said it was “because I lived there”.
Mr Kelley grew up in Waldo County in Maine. He confirmed to The Irish Times that he had been a soldier with US Armed Forces but said he had not been a marine as reported in some media. He said he has been living in Ireland for some years.
Mr Kelley moved to Kenmare about five years ago working with a man harvesting seaweed in Kenmare Bay, but he later lived in a tent in woodland before being offered accommodation by Mr Gaine at the old family farmhouse at Carrig East.
Gardaí spoke to Mr Kelley as part of their initial missing persons investigation into the disappearance of Mr Gaine, which involved extensive searches of the 1,000-acre hillside farm and the farmyard, including a slurry tank.
The slurry tank was drained of liquid on March 24th, and members of the Kerry Fire Service using breathing apparatus then searched the remaining solids with poles and rods but they found no trace of Mr Gaine’s body.
However, since the discovery of body parts, searches of the slurry tank and the surrounding fields where slurry was spread have resulted in the discovery of more remains, which DNA analysis has since confirmed are those of Mr Gaine.
